Discuss (v.) & discussion (n.)
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Why hold the discussion on an online forum?
Apart from the fact that ours is a reading and writing class, there are several solid reasons for holding at least some of our discussions online.- It practices response writing for fluency. Unlike in more formal academic writing, the goal is not to do research, but to quickly communicate your own ideas on topic or in response to an issue. You should still write complete sentences organized in paragraphs, but we are not looking for a carefully planned piece of work that was extensively reviewed and revised after it was first written and posted. Response writing is not academic writing.
- This sort of response writing is common at universities today. As part of their assessment, students are often expected to participate in online discussion forums that explore issues raised in lectures, seminars, or tutorials. This sort of response writing is a common component of academic work.
- Brainstorming and sharing ideas independently of face-to-face group discussion typically produces a wider and more thoughtful variety of responses, which is good for the group. See, for example, the articles on this in the Harvard Business Review by Art Markman (2017), Andrew O’Connell (2010), and Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic (2015).
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Rogers and Zemach's questions
and some notes
Rogers and Zemach's questions are:  |
| page 26 |
- Do you think that their government should help these artisans?
Your response to this question should be at least two sentences. It's a Yes/No question, but it's probably not a good idea to write "Yes" or "No". And you want to persuade classmates who disagree with you to change their minds.
- What kinds of artisans do you have in your country? What do they produce?
A couple of sentences on each type of artisan you think of is probably a good idea.
- Which do you prefer, modern or traditional designs? Why?
Again, we might have different ideas here, which is fine, but some supporting explanation will be very useful. This question probably needs the longest response, which might be a short, quickly written paragraph.
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| Potter sculpting a vase, p. 27 |
I avoided numbers in the questions here so that you would not be tempted to number your answers. Do not number your answers. Just write sentences organized in paragraphs so that your readers know what you are talking about and what you say on each topic.
And a helpful strategy
Imagine you are writing for someone who has not read the question you are answering or the article that the question follows up. Your job is to clearly communicate your response to that sort of reader, so it might help to paraphrase the question in your response to it.
Because your writing should make sense independently of the question it might be answering, it is usually useful to give background, which can often be done by paraphrasing the question into statements that begin your answer.
Remember
This is response writing. You do not have time to spend five minutes planning. You certainly do not have time to spend ten minutes checking your answer. Get an idea, and write it down in a sentence or two, or three. Then move on to the next idea. Quickly. The purpose is to clearly communicate your ideas, not to write a carefully researched essay. Do not waste time researching. (That means do not Google.)
At least one of the three questions probably does require you to think before you start to write. You have to take a side on the first question, and that means you need to decide which side you support and why, so it it probably a good idea to spend maybe 2:00 minutes planning before you write.
You have 15:00 minutes to write your responses to the three questions. Go.
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Reference
- Chamorro-Premuzic, T. (2015, April 2). Why brainstorming works better online. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2015/04/why-brainstorming-works-better-online
- Markman, A. (2017, May 18). Your team is brainstorming all wrong. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2017/05/your-team-is-brainstorming-all-wrong
- O'Connell, A. (2010, February 4). Sometimes, it’s better to brainstorm alone. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2010/02/when-its-better-to-brainstorm
- Rogers, L. & Zemach, D. E. (2018). Skillful 3: Reading & Writing (2nd. ed.). London: Macmillan Education
I'm not sure that the government should help the Tunisian artisans making pottery the traditional way. If the government helps them, it means that tax is used to support producing things that people do not want enough to pay the artisans to supply, and that sort of communist interference in the market is bad for the national economy, which hurts everyone. If there is no demand for the products at market prices, then the artisans should produce things that are in demand.
ReplyDeleteIn Australia, we have artisanal bread and cheese makers, who use the traditional ways of making their products. I can't think of other artisans producing things like pottery, but I'm sure there are some. Maybe. Actually, I think some people produce wool by hand for people to knit into clothes, so they would be artisans.
It's hard to say whether I prefer traditional or modern designs. I like some traditional designs, such as those on ancient Greek pottery, but less ancient English designs don't attract me so much. I prefer more modern designs for my technology. I guess it depends on the object and it's use. I don't really have a strong preference for either traditional or modern design independently of the context and the specific design. For example, I love everything Picasso has done, but he's definitely (???) not traditional.
Peter, what do you means by "the sort of communist interference? I think I did hear from the video. By the way, I agree with you that the government should support the products that can make good sales.
DeleteI agree with you that tax should be used to support things that people truly want. However, I think that governments might not have to push traditional pottery into mass markets. They can support it in way of art pieces such as using in for home decoration.
DeleteAccording to your response, I agreed from your detail that helping the artisans is bad for international economy because the artisans are just a very small parts of the Tunisia's economy, the government should this money to support the others who really want.
DeleteEmma, I think it's communist interference to stop markets deciding what is produced or consumed. That means if the government uses taxes to support inefficient products or imposes import duties to protect unwanted industry, I think it's communist control of markets so that they are not free and fair.
DeleteNow that I've thought about it more, I want to revise my opinion a bit about whether the government should help the artisans, especially after reading your ideas,such as Emma's and Nice's. If the tax is imposed only those producers, then I agree with Nice that it's unfair and should be cut, which would help the traditional potters. I also like Emma's idea to help them get more markets, including overseas markets. I would like to see their product continue to be produced, and I'm sure that there would be a demand for it, so help that consists of making it easier for them sell to customers everywhere is a good thing. My first idea, written quickly, did not think about other ways to help than giving them money, which was my mistake. Reading your ideas helped me to better understand what help could include, so thank you for sharing those ideas. That's why I like us to start by independently writing our own perspectives, which can then help all of us to see more aspects of the issue. ANd changing your mind is not a bad thing: it's the purpose of a discussion where we all contribute our own ideas to consider alternative approaches and understandings.
Delete1. I think the government should help the artisans because it has more recourses to supports them. The government can set regulations to facilitate international trads. For example, it can set up import tax and export tax to help the artisans be competitive in the international markets.
ReplyDelete2. In my country, Thailand, we have many kinds of artisans. However, the most well-known types of the artisans is painter.
3. For me, I prefer traditional designs, because it is unique.
Actually, I like Emma's idea. The sort of help that she suggests is OK because it's not taking tax money to support the artisans. Instead, it sets up a system to help them make sales of their higher quality products.
DeleteBut I don't agree with import and export taxes. I think free trade is better. Import and export taxes also harm the economies of the countries that impose them by distorting the markets to profit weak businesses or bad management, and I think it's wrong for the government to force other citizens to pay to keep those things going.
I think them government should help them because some tourist would interest in pottery and buy them so in this point their government should help them to develop about this traditional pottery.
ReplyDeleteIf the tourists are interested, shouldn't that be enough? How do you want the government to "help them to develop about this traditional pottery"?
DeleteIf governments support local artisans well, both the economy and art cultures tend to grow smoothly. It will enhance the craftsman's quality of life and unique local heritage. There are a lot of weavers in Thailand who perform well as silk fabric. Thai silks are so sophisticated and beautiful. I like the mix of contemporary art and traditional style.
ReplyDeletePhing, if I like listening to ancient Latin songs, should the government support that minority cultural interest by taxing everyone else to pay for the thing that a very small group of people enjoy? I think it's a great cultural heritage, but I'm not sure that is enough to justify forcing people who are not interested to pay for it. What do you think?
DeleteI agree with you that supporting cultural products can fuel countries' economy. In our country, the government is working on the same thing. They have been promoting creative economy by providing their supports in many ways such as provide training to the artisans.
DeleteYes, it does. I reckon the government should help the artisans by supporting them or decreasing taxes price. In Thailand, we have silk weaving artisans especially in the northern of Thailand. Personally, I prefer modern design because they looks international and I can adapt it with other things such as costume.
ReplyDelete